My Body is a Cage
by frailsail
Summary: Quinn has never felt at home in her body.  She finally wants to take control of her life in order to be the person she has always wanted to be.  The boy she has always felt she was.  Warning: deals with gender identity/a transgender character
1. Author's Note

Here's my obligatory "this is my first time posting" super long AN! Please bear with me. First off just a warning this story deals with gender identity and a trans character (who is this case will be our lovely Quinn). I understand this can be a sensitive subject and I intend to handle it with sensitivity and maturity. If this story doesn't sound like your cup of tea feel free to turn back now I won't be offended. No harm no foul. All right moving on! I've read two or three really great fics dealing with trans!quinn, and I honestly couldn't get enough, so I thought I'd contribute my own. The stories I have read mostly dealt with Quinn's coming out. What I wanted to do with this fic was maybe focus in on Quinn's day to day, and how I would do that is by posting snapshots of different events in Quinn and Rachel's lives (this is Faberry after all). This is going to be fairly AU so no Beth and I will be taking some liberties with the time line.

Just a heads up this first chapter is just an introduction to Quinn and some of Quinn's home life. I was originally going to just have a paragraph or so of introduction and jump into the first snapshot, but it kind of got away from me. It's kind of dry and choppy so I'm sorry for that.

Also I had trouble with pronoun usage. I wasn't sure if since Quinn isn't "out" yet in this introduction if I should use female pronouns, or if I should have just used male from the beginning. So I did this really awkward thing where it kind of switches in the middle. You'll understand what I mean when you read, but I apologize if that's off putting. Okay, I'm sorry this AN is so long I just had a lot I wanted to put out there before the story itself. Enjoy!


	2. An Introduction

**AN: **Hello there! I know it's kind of lengthy and dull but before you read the introduction I just wanted to make sure you've read my introduction to the introduction. It's not spoilery but it is a quick outline of my story, so you know what you're getting into. Thank you!

Quinn never felt quite at home in her body. She hated how those cheerleading skirts showed too much of her legs, she hated how those baby doll dresses flowed so elegantly past her knees, but most of all she hated having to perpetuate this image of being the perfect daughter.

When her father left shortly after her sophomore year that's when she decided for the first time to gain control of not only her life but her image. She quit The Cheerios, traded those elegant baby doll dresses in for jeans and sneakers, and chopped off her long blond hair. She came out to her mother and peers as a lesbian, because she figured that was easier than explaining the truth.

When Quinn came out to her mother, Judy used one word she'd never heard to describe herself- brave. _"You are so brave, Quinnie. I love you." _The words still rang in her ears. "_If I were actually brave I would be telling you the truth right now,"_She thought to herself. The truth that she is living her life in the wrong body.

Quinn did eventually tell Judy, and was pleasantly surprised at how accommodating she was. At the first opportunity Judy took Quinn shopping in order to make her bedroom more fitting. They got rid of the pastel bedsheets and replaced them with navy blue duvet. They painted an off white over the faint yellow walls, and Quinn hung up the Rolling Stones poster she's been hiding from her dad since she was 14. Now at least when at home Quinn was free to be who she wanted to be.

This was the first time the Fabray household felt like a home to Quinn. It was within those four walls Quinn was allowed to be _himself. _To be able to work towards being the person he truly felt he when he came home from school he would change out of his _girl _clothes and get more comfortable by changing into a pair of boxer shorts, sweatpants, and a t-shirt. Shortly after Quinn got in the habit of doing this he bought a breast binder, and began binding his chest while around the house. The first time Judy saw Quinn with his chest bound she cried. Not because she didn't recognize Quinn or because she felt she was losing her daughter, but because it was the first time she saw Quinn at peace in a long time.

From then on nothing really changed between Quinn and Judy. They would still sit down for dinner together. Quinn would ask judy about work and Judy would ask Quinn about Rachel. Quinn would always blush.

"_Why don't you just ask her out?" Judy asks.  
>Quinn shrugs. "I don't feel comfortable dating anybody until I'm ready to come out...ya know as a guy," Quinn said breaking eye contact with his mom.<br>"It's okay, Quinnie. Take your time," she reassures him. _

They would laugh as they watch reruns of friends, and then argue over what to watch next. Quinn sets the alarm on his ipod dock to wake him up at 6:30 sharp, and he drifts off to sleep but not before sneaking glances of the picture he took of Glee club sitting on his nightstand. Hoping that maybe tomorrow will be the day he works up the courage to finally let somebody in. To finally let Rachel in.

**AN 2: **I realize if gender identity or the concept of being transgender is foreign to you I've probably done crap job of setting it up and explaining, so for that I apologize. I tried my best to stay organized for this intro, but it kind of got away from me.


	3. How It Began

**AN: **First off can I just thank everybody who read, reviewed, alerted, or favorited this story? Thank you so much it's really humbling to think that there are people who want to read this story and take this journey with me! I guess I should also mention that I own nothing, and that honor goes to RM and Co. Okay so a bit about this chapter- I originally intended to dive in head first with Quinn and gender identity, but once again this chapter got away from me. This is more Rachel's introduction as a staple in Quinn's life. One last thing, I once again had trouble with figuring out what to do with the pronoun usage. I'm trying to be so politically correct that I think I'm over thinking it, so for this chapter at least the pronoun usage is female.

It was a good summer, but it was also the last summer. The last summer before college and before the real world was surely going to slap them in the face. Quinn's original plan for the summer was flying under the radar, ignoring Sue Sylvester's frightening bargaining tactics to get the Cheerios their captain back, and maybe spend some quality time with her Xbox. Fate had other plans though. It was a Saturday afternoon and Quinn and Judy were out grocery shopping. Judy was picking up finger foods for her next book club meeting while Quinn was stocking up on junk food for a very intense Call of Duty marathon.

Judy was in the bakery when she heard it.

"Rachel, honey- can you just go grab us some milk and we'll be ready to go." Judy turned to see a slender brunette man with glasses address his daughter. "I will gladly go get us some soy milk, dad." Rachel said with a smirk. "You can grab yourself some soy milk, and you can grab some low fat for your daddy and I," the man said with a chuckle. With that Rachel practically skipped away. _"Could this be The Rachel?" _Judy thought to herself. _"Petite, radiant smile, air of confidence and good energy about her. She fits the bill, it's gotta be her." _With that Judy raced over to Quinn who was looking down texting Mike. Presumably about what the best cookies for a video game marathon would be. "Quinn, I'm going to head to the check out line can you just get us some milk, dear." Quinn just nods still looking down, and heads in the direction of the milk aisle.

Getting the answer needed from Mike, Quinn quickly pockets her cellphone and looks up. What she finds is enough to make her grin from ear to ear. A struggling Rachel Berry on the tips of her toes trying to reach a carton of low fat milk above her head. Quinn saunters up behind her, "Here can I?" She asks as she reaches for the carton Rachel was trying to grab. "Oh Quinn you're a life saver! Thank you so much," Rachel said with a genuine smile.

What both Quinn and Rachel didn't know was that Judy was watching from just around the corner, and when she saw Quinn begin to walk away carton on milk in hand that's when she made her move. "Quinn there you are! O-oh who's your friend, sweetie?" Quinn just glared at her mother as if to say _"Please don't embarrass me. You know very well who this is." _Before Quinn could give an appropriate response, Rachel had already extended her hand to Judy. "Hi, Mrs. Fabray I'm Rachel Berry." Judy smiled at Rachel and gave what she thought was a subtle wink to Quinn. "Oh Rachel it's lovely to meet you. I've heard quite a bit about you." Quinn visibly paled at this. "Any publicity is good publicity for a rising star, but I hope you've only heard good things," the singer says confidently while looking over at Quinn. The blush coating her normally pale cheeks not going unnoticed by anybody. "Very good things," Judy assured Rachel secretly loving the reaction she was getting from Quinn.

"M-mom we should go. Mike will be over soon."  
>"Sweetie, Michael won't be by the house until six, it's barely even three." Judy turned to Rachel, "Have you ever played this <em>Courage of Duty-"<br>"_Call of Duty, Mom."  
>"Oh whatever. It's disturbing. Quinn and Michael just sit around and eat and shoot at things! And the yelling there's so much yelling!"<br>Rachel just beams at the mental image of the once prim and proper, future prom queen, Quinn Fabray yelling at the television in a fit of rage.  
>"No I can't say I've ever played this game, Mrs. Fabray."<br>"Oh please call me Judy." With that she turned to Quinn, "You should invite Rachel over, Qunnie! I'm sure Michael won't mind."  
>At Judy's suggestion Quinn felt her eyes widen considerably. "I-I'm sure Rachel has better things to do with her time than..."<br>"Nonsense," Rachel cut her off. "I was just going to spend my evening revisiting my _Best of Audrey Hepburn box set_, but I don't think I can pass up on an opportunity to see General Fabray in action."  
>Judy beamed and Quinn blushed.<br>"Can we expect you at the house around six, dear?"  
>"You can count on it," Rachel nodded. "Bye Judy it was a pleasure to meet you. See you soon, <em>General Fabray<em>." With that Rachel walked away leaving a very proud Judy and an awestruck Quinn in her wake.

And that's how their journey began. In the dairy aisle of a supermarket in Lima, Ohio. Little did either of them know that this would mark the beginning of a very memorable summer, and a beautiful chapter in both of their lives.


	4. When I'm With You

****AN: **I feel like I once again have to thank everybody for reading and all that good stuff, so thank you! Also same rules apply I don't own anything. These characters are still the playthings of RM and Co, I'm just taking them for a test drive. **

From the moment the diva entered the Fabray house for the first time she quickly became a constant in their household. Quinn and Rachel instantly became inseparable. On days too hot to leave the house they would stay in and have movie marathons or Quinn even once tried to teach the starlet how to play Left 4 Dead. After a lecture about how violent video games are affecting today's youth the blonde just laughed and suggested they play Mario Kart instead. Which Rachel was surprisingly good at. Judy even once roped them into painting the guest bedroom walls one afternoon. They didn't care what they were doing as long as it was with each other.

The first time they held hands they were silently sitting on the Berry's couch watching _Roman Holiday. _Which Quinn quickly learned was Rachel's favorite non-musical film. During the duration of the movie the blonde was more focused on the way Rachel's tan hand was only a few mere inches from her own pale one. Quinn held her breath as she quickly reached for Rachel's hand, and quickly chastised herself for how terribly not suave that action was. Rachel was shocked at first because she wasn't expecting the blonde to reach for her hand even though she was silently hoping she would. She just smiled at Quinn and laced their fingers together as they silently watched the rest of the film. After this handholding and cuddling because a constant when they watched movies together or even when they were within a few feet of one another.

The first time they kissed was on a blazing summer afternoon. They were both laying under a large oak tree, Quinn on her back with her copy of _The Catcher in the Rye _held in her line of vision, and Rachel laying right next to her listening to her iPod, and every once and a while humming along to whatever song was playing. The brunette girl just content on being next to the blonde. Quinn stopped reading and just closed her eyes when the words of a familiar song began to leave the diva's lips. Rachel began singing _Fix You _by Coldplay completely unknowing how close to home that song hit for Quinn. When Rachel finished singing Quinn couldn't help but gently grab the girl's face and kiss her. It was soft and tender just two pairs of soft lips meeting for the first time. Quinn kissed the girl and ran her hand through Rachel's brown locks until she was singing a completely different tune. The blonde tried to say some much with this kiss-

_You're beautiful.  
><em>

_I need you._

_Please fix me._

There were more kisses mostly during forgotten movie marathons or after playful arguments. In all honesty they just couldn't get enough of one another, and those stolen kisses soon became the favorite part of both of their days. They didn't rush to put a label on anything, for they feared they'd lose the magic of that first kiss, and because Quinn wasn't sure if she was ready to explain everything to Rachel. That was until one evening during the middle of summer. They were wrapped up on the couch in the Quinn's living room. Rachel's head was resting on Quinn's shoulder and the blonde had an arm wrapped around the girl's petite waist as the closing credits to _Moulan Rouge _began to play on Quinn's television. Quinn felt Rachel begin to fidget around in her seat, and her body language make it seem as if she was nervous. Quinn didn't understand what was going on in the girl's head until she spoke,

"Quinn can I tell you something. I just have something I've been needing to say for a while now." Quinn just nodded with her eyes focused on the girl beside her.

"I-I like you, Quinn. I've known this for a long time and I want for us to be together. I want you to be my girlfriend." Her words were confident, but her voice was small. At the diva's admission Quinn couldn't contain the sobs that began to wrack from her body, and Rachel for the life of her couldn't figure out what she'd said wrong. Before the brunette could even begin to apologize the blonde spoke,

"I like you too, Rachel. More than I could ever explain, but I don't want to be your girlfriend," Quinn managed to get out between sobs. Rachel just looked into Quinn's eyes confused and obviously hurt, but before she could voice her confusion Quinn sobbed out, "I want to be your boyfriend."

Realization suddenly hit Rachel.

"Oh Quinn," was all Rachel managed to say as she wrapped her arms tightly around Quinn's neck. Quinn just continued to sob taking refuge in the warmth of Rachel's embrace. The brunettte kept smoothing Quinn's blonde hair hoping the motion was soothing.

"Shh it's okay sweetheart. I understand it's okay," she whispered before she placed a chaste kiss on the the blonds cheek. The simple act made Quinn smile softly.

"D-do you r-really?" Quinn asked as she tried to take deep breaths. The brunette just nodded. She paused before she carefully thought over what she was going to say next. "Quinn do you not feel comfortable in your body?"

Quinn felt overcome with shame and just starred down eyes transfixed on the carpet, and just nodded.  
>"Quinn look at me. Please?" Rachel said softly. Quinn looked up at Rachel, watery hazel eyes meeting soft brown ones.<br>"It's okay, love. I'm here for you," Rachel whispered out and she brushed away some of Quinn's shaggy blonde hair.

They sat in relative silence for a few minutes with Quinn lost in thought head resting on Rachel's slender shoulder.

"Your hair is really growing out isn't it?" she said with a smile hoping to lighten the mood a bit.

"Ugh I know. I really want to get it re-cut. Maybe try something different," the blond shrugged.  
>"Well, maybe we can go get you a cut you feel more comfortable with," Rachel said as she continued to play with Quinn's hair.<br>Quinn's eyes lit up at the simple thought of this. "Really? You mean you'd go with me and everything?"

"Of course. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't?" Rachel said as she bit her lip nervously.  
>Rachel's words caused Quinn to smile immediately.<br>"D-do you really still want to be my girlfriend?"

"Only if you'll be my boyfriend," she smirked up at Quinn.  
>Quinn tried to hold them back but he couldn't contain the tears now flowing down his face.<br>"I'm sorry. I swear I'm not usually this emotional. It's just you've just made me the happiest guy in the world," he said as he wrapped his arms around Rachel. "But you really don't have any questions or anything? I mean when I told my mom she had like a hundred different questions, and she still doesn't quite get it," Quinn said as he managed to wipe the tears from his face.

"Quinn I grew up in a very accepting household. I've been going to PLAG events for as long as I can remember. I learned from a very young age that gender identity and sexuality aren't always black and white." Quinn just starred at her wide eyed wondering how on Earth he got so lucky to have Rachel Berry placed into his life, but he promised he would take up praying again if that meant God would allow him to keep her there.

"I do have a few questions though," she said shifting her weight on the couch, and taking Quinn's hand. "Well I assume you would be most comfortable with me using male pronouns when addressing you." She paused waiting for an answer. Quinn just nodded with a sheepish smile on his lips. "Okay that's what I thought. My other question is are you still wanting to go by Quinn or is there another name you'd prefer?"

"No, Quinn is fine. I want to change so much about myself that it's nice that my name is something I don't have to." Rachel admired Quinn's honesty and she noticed how it looked like the weight of the world has been lifted off of his shoulders. The brunette put a hand on each of Quinn's cheeks to ensure that he was looking at her. "You are so brave, Quinn. So so brave," she was fighting back her own tears. Rachel had never been so proud of anybody in her entire life.

It was the second time Quinn had ever been called brave, but it was the first time he actually believed it.

**AN 2: **As I mentioned in my incredibly long/boring first author's note this story is told in snap shots, and I have a few already planned out in my head. What I want to know from you lovely readers is- what would you like to see? Do you have any ideas? I'd love to hear them. You can message them to me or write it in a review if that's more your thing. I can't promise I can use them all, but I will take everybody's suggestions into consideration!


	5. Free as My Hair

**AN: Hello everybody! Thanks again for the continued support for my story. Same rules apply I own nothing just silly mistakes. **

School was going to start up again in two weeks and Quinn enthusiastically took Rachel up on her previous offer to go with him to get a haircut. They were currently sitting and waiting for the barber to finish cutting a young boy's hair

"Have you decided what you want to get done yet?" Rachel asked as she ran her fingers through Quinn's shaggy hair. An action that became second nature to her.

"Hmm I was actually thinking about just leaving here and having Puck cut my hair," he said with a mischievous grin.  
>"For the love of Barbara you are not letting Noah Puckerman anywhere near your hair. No boyfriend of mind is going to have a mohawk." Quinn laughed at his girlfriend's outburst and leaned over to press a light kiss on her cheek. "Relax Rach. I was just kidding. Uhm, I think I'm just going to have him cut it shorter especially around the ears," he said as he pushed the blonde hair out of his face.<p>

The barber finished sweeping up the hair from his last client, and gestured for Quinn to come over and take a seat.

"Here goes nothing," he grinned obviously a little nervous. Rachel just blew him a kiss as he walked away before pretending read a back issue of Sports Illustrated that was laying around.

"The name's Ray," the friendly barber said offering Quinn his hand. Ray was an portly older gentleman, with greying hair, tan skin, and a smokey voice that held traces of an Italian accent.  
>"Quinn," he said returning Ray's firm handshake.<br>"So what can I do for you today...kiddo?" Ray asked a little hesitant on how to address Quinn. His hesitance didn't discourage Quinn too much. He wasn't trying to pass as male in public yet, and today he left the house wearing a comfortable pair of blue jeans and a black v-neck shirt. He hated how the shirt wouldn't cling flat to his chest because of his breasts, but Quinn wasn't quite comfortable with wearing a binder out in public yet.

"Just something short please...but not too short I don't want like a buzz cut or anything," he blurted out.

"Relax kid. You'd think this was your first haircut," Ray chuckled as he placed a towel around the boy's neck to catch any stray hairs.  
>"In a lot of ways it is," Quinn said looking down. The barber felt the change in tone shift, but knew it wasn't he place to press the issue. The barber changed the blade on the clippers and caught Quinn's eye in the mirror, "Ready?" he smirked. Quinn just smiled and enthusiastically nodded his head.<p>

Ray brought a comb through Quinn's hair and stopped about mid ear, "Is this length all right?" He asked before he brought the clippers up to begin the cut. As Ray continued cutting Quinn's hair he couldn't help but notice how Quinn kept looking at Rachel through the mirror.

"Is that your girlfriend over there?" He chuckled.  
>"Yes sir," the blonde grinned.<br>"She's cute take care of her," the barber said as he gave Quinn a pat on the shoulder.

"I plan on it," Quinn beamed.  
>"All right I think we're done here," Ray said as he turned off the clippers and ruffled Quinn's short blonde hair. "Well, we do have to get the me misses approval first."<br>"Of course," Quinn turned to look behind him and caught Rachel's attention. She came practically running over.

"Oh my goodness, Quinn. You look so handsome! Like a modern day Gregory Peck," she exclaimed as she ran her hands through his much shorter locks. Quinn just averted his eyes looking flattered but at the same time embarrassed.

"Well I don't recall Mister Peck ever sporting bed head like this. Want me to style it for you?" Ray asked Quinn. "No, I kind of like it like this," he smirked as ran his fingers through his hair for the first time. "It looks cool."

Quinn thanked Ray and handed him a twenty dollar bill which covered both the hair cut and a tip before making his way out to the car with Rachel. As Quinn unlocked the door for her Rachel played with the sparse hairs on the nape of his neck. "I really do like your hair, Quinn. The bedhead is rather sexy," she said smoothly. Quinn tried to hide his blush as he turned around to face Rachel. "Thank you," he said sheepishly before giving her a quick peck on the lips and walking around to the driver's side.

"Where to now?" The ecstatic blonde asked as he played with his hair while looking in the rearview mirror. "Do you think we can go to the department store downtown? I wanted to pick up some school clothes and daddy wouldn't be able to take me until the weekend. Oh! We can pick you out some clothes too! I mean if that's something you'd be comfortable with," Rachel said trying to quell her excitement. "Yeah, we can do that," Quinn said as he pulled out of the parking lot.

They drove in relative silence just listening along to the music on Quinn's iPod plugged into the car while holding hands over the center console. Rachel was lost in thought. Thinking about how amazing the past month has been with Quinn. How sweet he has been with her and he makes her feel not only significant but loved. Her thoughts got away from her and she finally decided to speak up.

"Quinn, can I ask you something?"  
>"Of course, anything," he answers as he takes a quick glance at her before focusing his eyes on the road.<p>

"What are you going to do when school starts in two weeks?"  
>"Oh," he paused. "That's actually something I've been talking to Dr. Milo about a lot lately."<p>

Once Quinn came out to Rachel her father's suggested that he start talking to a therapist. Accepting help was something that was never easy for Quinn, but his outlook on that changed when he met Dr. Milo. He was a younger doctor in his mid-thirties who specialized in how to deal with gender identity. The doctor was somebody that Quinn could confide in rather than somebody he would talk to in order to get analyzed.

"Really? I know your therapy with Dr. Milo is very personal, but would you mind letting me in?" Rachel asked. Normally she didn't push Quinn into talking about his sessions, but this has been something on her mind a lot lately.

"Yeah uh sure. Honestly at first I didn't want to come out this year, but he did mention that the sooner I come out the sooner I'm free to be _Quinn_ full time," he chuckled nervously. Rachel just rubbed her thumbs over her boyfriend's knuckles soothingly silently asking him to continue.

"I'm so just scared, Rach. I mean people were shocked when they thought I was gay. This is a whole different league, and I just don't know if I'm strong enough to handle it," he admitted.

"Baby you're strong enough to anything. Look at how far you've come this summer. I'm so proud of you, Quinn. But this is your decision and your decision alone. Just know I'll support you no matter what," the brunette said as she brought Quinn's hand to her lips kissing his knuckles tenderly.

"Thank you, beautiful. You know I wouldn't be able to do this without you," he said as he pulled into the parking space at the department store. Rachel just answered by leaning over the center console and pressing a soft kiss on his lips.

"Something tells me I'm going to holding stacks of clothes while my beautiful girlfriend tries them on. Am I right?" Quinn jokes as Rachel hands him a sweater she's considering buying. "You got it," she winks at him. "Just kidding. We can go up to the men's department in a bit. I just want to try some stuff on."

"Sure, sure, sure," Quinn grumbles as he follows her through racks among racks of clothing. "How about this?" Quinn mockingly suggests as he holds up a low cut torn tank top. "Quinn Fabray! That barely even constitutes as an article of clothing," she scolds him.

"I'm just kidding babe," he smiles at her as he puts in back on the rack.

"Okay, I think I'm ready to head to the dressing room. Will you wait out here for me?"

"Of course."

After what feels like an hour to Quinn, Rachel finally emerges from the dressing room with a smaller pile of clothes in her hands.

"Okay, I found a few things. Ready to go shop for you?"  
>"Uhm you know we don't have to. If you're ready to go we can just head back to my place. I'm sure mom would like to see you."<br>"Nonsense, Quinn. You were more than patient with me. It's the least I can do."

With that they headed up to the men's department on the second floor. Quinn always felt nervous shopping in the men's section. He knew that was the clothing he wanted, but he always felt as if he was being judged by the other shoppers.

"Are you okay, Quinn?" Rachel asked as she saw him just slowly walking through the clothing racks never picking anything up.  
>"Yeah, it's just...I never really enjoyed shopping. When I was little it's because it was never for the clothes I wanted, but now it's... I guess I feel like people are judging me," he said looking away from Rachel.<br>"Oh Quinn. Sweetie nobody is judging you okay? We're just here to get you some new clothes. Now come on," she said as she grabbed his arm and pulled him the direction of the jeans.

Rachel had more fun dressing up Quinn than she did looking for clothes for herself. And Quinn was proud of all the clothes he found that made him feel a little more confident in his body. He found four pairs of jeans, two t-shirts, four button up shirts, one argyle sweater (Rachel insisted), and a leather jacket. It wasn't a whole new wardrobe, but it would get him by the first week of school.

"Oh wait...one more thing," Quinn said as he stopped dead in his tracks.  
>"What is it?"<br>"Uhm I need to pick up some you know...underwear" he said looking away slightly embarrassed, "You can wait here though I'll be right back."

"Aw is Quinny embarrassed," Rachel joked pinching his cheeks.  
>"No, I just didn't want to...ugh come on let's go," he said grabbing his girlfriend's hand leading her in the direction of the undergarments. Rachel just followed giggling.<p>

Quinn quickly grabbed a pack of his favorite boxer briefs and walked away. Until he tried to sneakily grab something else that caught his eye.

"Really Quinn? I knew you were a nerd, but Superman boxers," she laughed. "You know I never knew how much of a nerd you were. Was this a fairly recent development?" Rachel wondered as they began walking to the cashier.  
>"No way," he chuckled. "You can blame my sister for that though."<br>"How do you mean?"  
>"Well growing up we weren't allowed to have any music, books, or magazines that my dad didn't approve of, so Bess and her boyfriend Jay would always sneak stuff in for us," Quinn grinned while called the memory. "And Jay gave me all his old comic books, and it kind of took off from there."<br>"Is your sister much older than you?"  
>"Yeah, she's eight years older, and was always kind of the rebel. She lives in New York now ya know?" Rachel's eyes lit up at this.<p>

"No way."  
>"Yeah she owns a small clothing boutique. I've been been to visit her though," Quinn said sadly.<br>"We should go! I-I mean you should go visit your sister." Rachel said looking away sheepishly.  
>"Yeah. Maybe we can make a trip over Winter Holiday?" He suggested already knowing how much his girlfriend would love that idea.<br>"Oh Quinn can we?"  
>"I don't see why not," Quinn shrugged as he approached the check out stand.<p>

They made their way out the store Quinn holding both his and Rachel's bags. When they approached Quinn's car he put all their bags in the trunk, and then opened Rachel's door for her where he was rewarded with a soft kiss on the cheek.

On the drive home Quinn couldn't keep the smile off his face. His confidence was the highest it has been in months and he had a new haircut, some new clothes, and a cute little brunette to thank for that.

**AN 2: Once again if you have any ideas of anything you want to see feel free to shoot me a message or put it in a review. Thanks again! **


	6. The Execution of All Things

**AN: **I still own nothing. Also, sorry for the false alarm last night. I went to publish this chapter and noticed that I forgot something, and right after I made the change and went to re-publish and my internet went out.

After quite a few discussions with Rachel, his mother, and Dr. Milo Quinn finally came to a decision regarding coming out. Dr. Milo suggested he try coming out to a few people before school started, so he could have more allies than just Rachel. That's when Rachel suggested they hold a an impromptu glee club meeting the Saturday before school started. Rachel sent out an email and after quite a bit of reluctance she was able to convince everybody to attend.

_**Subject: **__Your attendance is required for a very special pre-senior year glee club meeting!_

_Greeting fellow glee clubbers! I must request your attendance at my house at 8 AM sharp this Saturday. Attendance is mandatory and bagels and coffee will be provided._

_Sincerely,  
>Rachel Barbara Berry and Quinn J. Fabray <em>

It was 8:15 in the morning when the last of a very sleepy glee club came into Rachel's house and made themselves comfortable in her living room.

"Good morning everybody! Noah get your feet off the coffee table...Okay as you may have seen in a rather recent development on Facebook. Quinn and I are indeed in a committed monogamous relationship." Quinn and Rachel felt they had nothing to hide with their relationship, but it was only until recently they shared this information with their peers via facebook.

"Hold up Berry if you hauled my ass out of bed on the last Saturday before school starts just to tell me that you and Blondie here have been bumpin' uglies all summer I willends you and it _will _look like an accident," Santana piped in.

Rachel averted her eyes making a mental note that maybe this meeting should have been held after Santana got her full eight hours. "No no Santana. Quinn and I called you all here because she has a very important announcement, and we all need your help with something."

Quinn was suddenly nervous the reality of what he was about to reveal crashed around him. His mind was swimming with all the outcomes of his friend's reactions. _What if they laugh in my face, what if they never want to see me again, what if they call me a freak? _The blond had trouble finding his own voice just looking in to the curious eyes of his friends, and was about to bolt out of Rachel's house until he felt a small hand grab his and a sweet voice in his ear whispering, "You can do this, Quinn." He just closed his eyes, took a deep breath and nodded. Quinn was confident that the new haircut and wardrobe change would have tipped them off a little, but he was still nervous.

"Uhm Rachel helped me call this meeting, because there's something I need to tell everybody. I-I'm transgender." There is was it was out in the open. He looked among his group of friends at their reactions everybody for the most part looked confused. Except for Kurt who gave him a supportive smile.

"W-what that means is I was born in the wrong body," he inwardly rolled his eye at how science fiction-y that sounded, but it was the simplest way to put it. He looked over to Rachel hoping for some help. She just have his hand a squeeze and addressed the group.

"What Quinn means is he does not identity with the physical form he was born into." That's when it clicked for everybody. _He. _

"Wait...so Quinn's a guy? That's not right we dated and stuff." Finn mentioned looking utterly confused.

"Yeah and you were on the Cheerios," Mercedes added. "Is this like some kind of phase or test?"

Quinn just stood there looking dejected until the last person anybody expected to speak up did.

"Guys will you stop?" Mike exclaimed. "Seriously can't you see what a big deal this is for Quinn. It's not like s-he would call us over here on a Saturday morning if he was just messing around." Mike blushed and sent him an apologetic smile at his almost mixup. Quinn just nodded at him. He knew it would take a while for everybody to get used to this.

The room fell silent until Rachel spoke again. "Thank you, Michael." She beamed at her boyfriend's best friend. "No problem. Now what do you need from us? How can I help?" The dancer questioned.

"Uhm well my therapist helped me write a letter to the staff explaining my situation to them, but the rest of the school obviously doesn't know. Basically all I need is for you guys to support me, because I know there are going to be people out there who won't."

Puck was the next to speak up. "Of course, dude. I mean we may not all understand right now, but we have your back. Right guys?" He addressed the rest of the club. They all nodded in agreement with a chorus of "Yes" and "Of course."

"See dude. We'll all look out for you no worries," Puck said walking over to Quinn and bumping his fist with his own.

"Thank you for coming everybody! You may help yourself to bagels, coffee, and juice in the kitchen," Rachel added never ceasing being a good hostess. Quinn saw Santana excuse herself to grab some bagels and orange juice for herself and Brittany. He saw this as the perfect opportunity to see how the blond girl was handing this information.

"Hey Britt?"  
>"Oh hey Quinn!"<br>"Can I take a seat?"  
>"Of course, silly. It's totally your girlfriend's house you can sit where ever you want. Except the washing machines. Apparently she doesn't like that," she giggled.<p>

Quinn just grinned at his friend. "Uhm Britt do you understand everything that Rachel and I talked about today?"  
>"Oh totally." Quinn looked at her skeptically. "It's just like if you try to put the engine of some super hot sports car in my dirt bike. It doesn't work like that, and you have to take it to the mechanic to change some things." Quinn just looked at his friend in awe at how surprisingly accurate that was.<br>"I guess that's one way of putting it."  
>"See Quinn I can totally be smart."<br>"I never said you couldn't, B."  
>"Oh and Quinn? You are Rachel are totally cute and you look really hot in that leather jacket. Don't tell Santana I said that though."<br>Quinn smiled at his friend before turning around where he was pulled into a hug by Kurt.

"Ooof, hey Kurt."  
>"Sorry. I'm just really proud of you, Quinn."<br>"Thank you."  
>"Every other Thursday I go to a LGBT youth group at the community center. I would love it if you came with me."<br>He smiled at the other boys thoughtfulness, "Thanks. Uhm I'll keep in in mind, okay?"  
>"Of course," he said wrapped his arms around Quinn in another hug which he reciprocated and gave Kurt a pat on the back.<p>

Rachel just stood off the corner observing the exchange between her best friend and her boyfriend. When Kurt walked away Rachel approached Quinn with two cups of coffee in her hand and handed one to Quinn.

"Thanks babe," The blond said before giving his girlfriend a kiss on the lips. From the kitchen they heard Santana make fake gagging noises before Brittany told her to play nice.

"You're welcome," Rachel said with an eye roll at Santana's antics. "How are you feeling after everything?" She asked while rubbing soothing circles on Quinn's shoulder.

Quinn swallowed thickly and looked his girlfriend in the eyes. "You know I feel all right. I really do." He answered truthfully. Quinn was still nervous about how the rest of his classmates were going to react come Monday, but he feels a lot better about walking through those halls knowing the glee club has his back while he has Rachel holding his hand.

**AN 2: **Any suggestions, questions, comments, or concerns? Go ahead and shoot me a message or review. If you're looking for me to get back to you a message is the easiest way. Once again thank you again for reading it really means a lot!


	7. I'm Ready, I am

**AN: **I still own nothing. I meant for this update to be longer and have more in it, but I was just kind of anxious to a new chapter posted. Enjoy and thanks for reading you guys really are awesome!

It was the morning of the first day of senior year and Quinn didn't think he could be more nervous. He currently stood before his full length bathroom mirror giving himself a once over. He didn't want to wear anything that would attract too much attention to himself, so decided on a pair of blue jeans, a white t-shirt, and black converse. The last two weeks he had begun wearing his chest binder out in public, and it actually gave him a great deal of confidence. Confidence that he surely needed right now.

He grabbed his backpack off his bed and made his way down the stairs to the kitchen where he was met by his mother taking something out of the oven.  
>"Quinn! Perfect timing. I made muffins!"<br>"Awesome. Can I take mine to go I'm picking up Rachel."  
>"Of course! Will you drop these off at the Berry's?" She asked handing the blond a tupperware container full of muffins.<br>"Are they-"  
>"Vegan. Yes yes they're vegan."<br>"Cool. Okay well I'm gonna go..." Quinn said looking down at his feet obviously nervous about his first day.  
>"Quinn all your teachers are aware of your situation. You have a whole staff and glee club looking out for you," she said pulling her son into a hug.<br>"Thanks mom. Remember I'm having dinner at Rachel's tonight, so I'll be home kind of late."  
>"Of course dear. Give them my love."<br>Quinn just gave his mom a smile before heading out to his car.

He didn't race over to Rachel's like her normally did. He took the long way to her house completely bypassing the shortcut he had found. To say he was stalling was an understatement. Quinn finally pulled into the Berry's driveway and got out of his car. He rang the doorbell but didn't have to wait long for an answer. Rachel's father Hiram, petite man with glasses and Rachel's eyes quickly answered the door.

"Quinn come in! Sorry Rachel is still getting ready. You know how she is," he said as he opened the door for him to come inside. "No problem. Oh my mom made muffins," Quinn informed Hiram as he handed the older man the tupperware container. "Great this must be the recipe she was telling me about. Go have a seat. Lee is just having some coffee, and help yourself to whatever's on the table," he said ushering Quinn into the dining room.

Quinn took a seat across from Rachel's other father, Leroy, a local police officer. When Quinn and Rachel first started dating her Daddy intimidated him. It was a combination of his deep voice, his unwavering need to protect his family, oh and the cop uniform was pretty scary at first too. When Quinn was able to look past how much Rachel's daddy intimidated him they actually became close. Leroy in a lot of ways took Quinn under his wing and became a good confidant for him not to mention a great role model.

"Hey Papa Bear," the blond said as he poured himself a glass of orange juice. "Quinn," Leroy said with a nod as he smirked over the top of the newspaper he was reading.

"Did the Reds lose again?" Quinn asked. Even if sports never really interested him he knew that the older man was a die hard Cincinnati Reds fan.  
>"Yeah," Leroy groaned out. "But we play the Astros tonight so they're practically handing the win to us."<p>

"Lee quit boring Quinn with your baseball talk. He's just being polite asking you about it," Hiram said playfully as he walked back into the dining room. "Yeah yeah yeah," the taller gentlemen said as he got out of his seat. "Okay, I better head to work," he said before he gave his husband a kiss on the cheek and Quinn a pat on the back.

"Bye Super Star!" He called up the stairs just as Rachel came running down. "Bye daddy," she exclaimed practically tackling him in a hug before making her way into the kitchen.

"Sweetheart you're going to have to take your tea and breakfast to go. You and Quinn don't want to be late for class," Hiram warned. "Okay dad. Quinn!" The brunette squealed when she saw her boyfriend already sitting at the table. "Morning beautiful," he smiled at her as he got up from his seat. "Are you ready for today?" Rachel asked as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm really nervous to be honest," he said with his eyes downcast. "We'll get through this together, okay?" She said placing a kiss on his cheek. "Yeah. You and me."

Rachel grabbed her school bag, travel mug of tea, and one of the muffins Judy made and followed Quinn out to his car. Rachel was determined for the car ride not to be silent, so she kept the conversations light. She would ask Quinn about what songs he wanted to do for Glee club or if he's given any thought of going to a LBGT youth meeting with Kurt. Quinn was thankful for the light conversation he didn't want to be alone with his thoughts right now.

They arrived to the school and Quinn parked the car. He saw people heading into the building and assumed that means the first bell has rung. Rachel grabbed his hand as they approached the school.

"I-is this okay?" She asked suddenly nervous herself.  
>"Yeah. I-I need you right now," he said his voice suddenly small.<p>

Nobody seemed to pay him much attention. They all seemed too busy trying to find their first class or catching up with their friends about their Summer. That was until Quinn and Rachel were alone at his locker.

"Fabray?"  
>Quinn took a deep breath recognizing the antagonizing voice of Dave Karofsky addressing him. "Yeah Dave?"<br>Karofsky let out a humorless chuckle. "You know I heard somethings, but I just wanted to see for myself. I knew you were a dyke, but I didn't know you were a freak too." With that one of the football players standing behind Karofsky slug his half drunken slushie right into Quinn's chest.  
>"Leave him alone, Dave!" Rachel said trying to get him to back off.<br>"Oh you need your little midget girlfriend to fight your battles for you? So you're not only a freak but you're a coward? Huh you got nothing to say Fabray," he taunted as he shoved Quinn into the lockers behind him.

"HEY!" They heard the deep bellowing voice of Coach Beiste enter through the halls. "You keep you hands off of him!" The football player quickly took his hands off Quinn's chest and defensively put them in the air. "The three of you go to Figgins' office. NOW!" She yelled when they didn't move. "Rachel can you go with them," she asked in a much softer tone, but her voice was still stern. "But Quinn-"

"Please Rachel. They're going to need a witness, and Quinn is going to need a moment to get himself together before anything." Rachel nodded and gave Quinn a strong hug and a kiss on the cheek before she followed behind the football players to Principal Figgins' office.

As the hallway cleared Quinn just slid down the locker his back was facing, drew his knees to his chest, and wrapped his arms around himself. "This was a bad idea..." he muttered to himself as the coach kneeled next to him. She let him have a few minutes just to gets his tears out as he rocked back and forth before she spoke up.

"You're the most courageous guy here, Quinn" Coach said looking him in the eye. "I don't feel very courageous," Quinn said looking down at his slushie covered t shirt. "If you weren't you'd still be walking these halls in a cheerios skirt." Quinn visibly winced at the memory of his old self. "See that's never who you were. This is who you are," Beist said placing a comforting hand on Quinn's shoulder. "And sometimes it's harder being who you really are instead of hiding behind what's expected of you." Quinn listened to the wise words of the coach and just nodded along. "All right buddy how about you go get yourself cleaned up? The coed handicapped bathroom near the science wing has a lock. Take your time." "Coach?" Quinn meekly asked looking up at the much taller woman. "Yeah, Q?"

"Thank you so much," he said biting back tears. "Don't mention it," she said giving the boy a pat on the back. "I'm sure Berry is done in Figgins' office by now. Want me to send her your way?"

"Yeah. Thanks, coach" Beiste just sent him a smile and made her way towards the principal's office as Quinn made his way to the bathroom.

When Quinn got into the bathroom he let out all the tears he thought he could hold in. He stood leaning against one of the sinks keeping his eyes down not even wanting to see himself in the mirror. Until he heard the bathroom door open.

"Rach?" He asked cautiously turning around.  
>"Sorry to disappoint dude it's just me," he heard Mike say as he turned around.<br>"W-what are you doing here?" the blond asked frantically wiping the tears from his cheeks.  
>"I saw you come in here after what happened in the hall. Puck and I were gonna pull Karofsky back, but then Beiste beat us to it."<br>"Thank, Mike. You should get to class though I'm fine Rachel is on her way over here I think."  
>"Wait," Mike said as he began to unbutton his short sleeve green plaid shirt.<br>"Woah what are you doing?"  
>"Relax dude I have a t-shirt on under, and you don't need to be walking around in slushie all day," he said as he handed the shirt to Quinn.<br>"You don't have to do this."  
>"Yeah I do. You're my friend, Quinn, and I have your back."<p>

They heard the door open again and Mike quickly turned around to make sure it wasn't a rogue football player who followed them in there. Luckily it was just Rachel.

"Oh hello Michael."  
>"Hey Rach. Uhm I should head to class. I'll see you guys later."<br>"What was Mike doing in here?" She asked curiously as she locked the door.  
>Quinn just held up the shirt for her to see. He wasn't sure what to say, and if he was being honest with himself he was embarrassed.<p>

At the sight of Rachel he had a fresh set of tears coating his cheeks. She quickly wrapped her arms around him.

"Shh Quinn it's okay now. They aren't going to bother you anymore. They'll probably get expelled, and when we tell daddy he can probably get them for a hate crime."  
>"I don't want anybody to get in trouble because of me," he sobbed out.<br>"Quinn what they did was inhumane there's no excuse to treat another person like that."  
>"Rachel can't you see? I'm supposed to protect you! How can I do that when I can't even protect myself?" He said now getting angry at the situation.<br>"They cornered you there wasn't much you could do, sweetheart," she said trying to soothe him.  
>"I know but-"<br>"Shh no more of this Quinn. We're going to get you through this. Now how about we get you cleaned up?"

Quinn just nodded standing up from the floor, and then offering Rachel a hand to help her up too. He just turned around with his back facing Rachel and lifted the slushie stained shirt off his body.

"Ugh I can't believe I ever did this to you," he commented as he wiped the slushie off his chest binder. Rachel just shrugged.

"I got used to it after a while."  
>"You should have never had to get used to it. I'm so sorry," he turned around to face her so she would know how serious he was. "I was horrible to you and yet here you are. You're perfect."<br>"I'm far from Perfect, Quinn, and I always figured you were working through something I just never knew what. I just assumed it was your family life."

"I guess that was always part of it," he sighed. "But the slushies, the demeaning names, you didn't deserve any of that. I would call you all those horrible names so you would feel as bad about your body as I felt about mine. It was twisted and so...just so fucked up. I can never apologize enough, Rachel."

"Quinn I forgave you for all that stuff a long time ago. Without you even apologizing. Lets quit worrying about the past, and look ahead to our future, okay?" She said as she helped him button up his shirt.

They left the bathroom together with Quinn still nervous about the rest of his, but he couldn't help but wonder not for the first time how he had gotten so lucky to have Rachel Berry in his life.

**AN 2: **Remember to hit me up if you have an suggestions and messages are always the easiest if you would like me to answer any questions!


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